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Tag Archives: World Cinema
Review: Mary and the Witch’s Flower (2017)
MARY AND THE WITCH’S FLOWER, the first film from Studio Ghibli successors Studio Ponoc looks stunning, but it does feel insubstantial. That’s not to say it’s bad, it’s just not really about much. I’m prepared to forgive a lot because … Continue reading
Review in Brief: Psychokinesis (2018)
What does Yeon Sang-ho, do after directing companion zombie thrillers TRAIN TO BUSAN and SEOUL STATION? Why a comedy-soap-superhero movie, of course! PSYCHOKINESIS follows a deadbeat dad (Ryu Seung-ryong) using telekinetic superpowers acquired from meteorite-contaminated springwater to save his daughter … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Comedy, Ryu Seung-ryong, Seoul Station, Shim Eun-kyung, Superhero Movie, Train to Busan, World Cinema, Yeon Sang-ho
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Review in Brief: Blade of the Immortal (2017)
BLADE OF THE IMMORTAL is one-man filmmaking army Takashi Miike’s 100th feature and arguably his largest scale project to date. I doubt the man who makes Ridley Scott look sluggish even broke a sweat (only a film a year, Ridders? … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Blade of the Immortal, Hana Sugisaki, Highlander, Martial Arts, Ridley Scott, Takashi Miike, Takuya Kimura, Thriller, World Cinema
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Review in Brief: Bloody Milk (2017)
It really has been the year for depressing farming dramas hasn’t it? First-time UK filmmakers gave us THE LEVELLING and GOD’S OWN COUNTRY, now comes France’s offering, BLOODY MILK. Director Hubert Charuel must have drawn on some of his own … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Bloody Milk, Drama, God's Own Country, Hubert Charuel, Swann Arlaud, The Levelling, World Cinema
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Review in Brief: The Villainess (2017)
Creative fight choreography and full-on violence is one thing, but what really blew me away about THE VILLAINESS was the cinematography. I can’t even begin to imagine how they achieved some of these impossible shots. For once a POV action … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Kim Ok-bin, Martial Arts, The Raid, The Villainess, Thriller, World Cinema
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Review in Brief: Toni Erdmann (2016)
Pretty much every review I’ve seen of TONI ERDMANN has been focussed on how unexpectedly good a two-and-a-half hour German comedy turns out to be. I find that overly reductive and more than a little patronising. American comedies are often … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Black Comedy, Jack Nicholson, Maren Ade, Sandra Hüller, Toni Erdmann, World Cinema
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Review in Brief: Seoul Station (2016)
SEOUL STATION brings back slapstick zombies and a good punch of dark satire in its final act, but as a companion piece to TRAIN TO BUSAN, it falls rather short in terms of character. None of the supposed protagonists are … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Seoul Station, Train to Busan, World Cinema, Yeon Sang-ho
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Review: The Handmaiden (2016)
THE HANDMAIDEN is unmistakably a Park Chan-wook film. A polished tale of control featuring sadistic torture and plot-reevaluating twists, this is far beyond the ordinary bodice-ripper. During the Japanese occupation of Korea, a thief (Kim Tae-ri) masquerades as a handmaiden … Continue reading
Review in Brief: Train to Busan (2016)
It must be a nightmare thinking up new ways to portray zombies, but the walking-seizuring, rictus-grinning infected of TRAIN TO BUSAN are certainly original, creepy and funny creations. You don’t need much of a shake-up in terms of the confined … Continue reading
Posted in Film, Film Review
Tagged Black Comedy, Horror, Train to Busan, World Cinema, Zombie
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